Is it time to start thinking about wooden industrial buildings?

Planning ahead

What design decisions do you need to account for with industrial wood buildings?

When developing an industrial plant, all decisions will be highly influenced by the production processes that will take place in the space. What area and dimensions are needed? What is the process from raw material to final product? How many people will work there? What types of machines will the building house? What is the minimum ceiling height? Is a completely open plan fundamental or can internal columns be tolerated? While the obvious benefit of a free floor plan relates to unimpeded flows within the building and greater flexibility in terms of layout, by including internal columns in the space, construction costs are significantly reduced.

Whether with intermediate columns or not, industrial buildings will usually need considerable spans of open space. The three most common ways to achieve large open spaces with wood are with beams, trusses, or arches. Beams generally provide the most economical solution for areas with shorter spans and reduced vertical loads (in Canada, for example, a typical vertical load corresponds to the amount of snow, which places a considerable burden on roofs). For longer spans and greater vertical loads, using traditional beams becomes unviable due to high material costs and difficulties in handling and transportation.

BC Passive House Factory / Hemsworth Architecture. Image © Ema Peter Photography